Revolving air compressor



F. A. GERLING.

REVOLVING AIR COMPRESSOR.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 4,1919.

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

III I Snow-m5 F. A. GERLING.

REVOLVING AIR COMPRESSOR.

APPLICATION FILED 050.4, 1919.

1,40 Patented Feb. 28; 1922 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK AUGUST GERLING, OF SILVER CITY, IDAHO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTHTO DANIEL DALE LONG. AND ONEFOURTI-Lf TO RICHARD RICHARDSON, BOTH OFBOISE,

IDAHO.

REVOLVING AIR GOMPTi-ESSOR.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Fnnnnnrox AUGUST GERLING, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Silver City, in the county of Owyhee and State ofIdaho, have invented a new and useful Revolving Air Compressor, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved revolving air compressor, and theobject thereof is to provide a balanced machine which will require asmall amount of power to operate so as to compress and store air underpressure for various uses.

A further object of the invention is to provide a revolving aircompressor having novel actuating means, capable of being automaticallyoperated during the rotation of the machine, and so constructed as toregulate the weight of a plurality of pendulums designed to actuate thecompressors or air pumps so that the degree of pressure may be varied asto the capac ty of the machine, and in addltion, to provide improved.means for lubricating the parts during the operation.

'which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides inthe combination and arrangement of parts and in the details ofconstruction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood thatwithin the scope of what is claimed, changes in the precise embodimentof the invention shown can be made without departing from the spirit ofthe invention.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is an end elevation partly in section of my revolving aircompressor;

Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view thereof; taken on theline 2-2 of Figure 1 and looking in the direction indicated by thearrows;

Figure 3 is a cross sectionalview taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 2;

, Figure 4 is a cross sectional View taken on the line 41- 1 of Figure2;

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view in end elevation showing thearrangements of the arms and pendulums to balance the machine;

Figure 6 is a side elevation showing a modified form of means foradjusting the 7 weight of the pendulums; and

Specification of Letters latent. Patented Feb. 28 1922 Application filedDecember a, 1919. 7

Serial no. 342,427.

Referring to the drawings in detail, in which like reference charactersdesignate corresponding parts throughout the several views, my improvedrevolving air compressor, is shown as comprising a base 10 upon which issupported any number of alined bearings 11 vertically arranged anddesigned to rotatably receive in their upper ends, a horizontal shaft12, suitable anti-friction means consisting of rollers, balls or thelike, being provided if desired between the shaft and the bearin 'sthereof; The shaft is adapted to be driven in any suitable manner from aprime mover, such as a gasoline en gine, or a steam engine; The oppositeend of the shaft which is hollowed out longitudinally as indicated at14, is connected to a stationary pipe 15 through a medium of a swivel orcoupling 16, said pipe 15 leading to a suitable store chamber forcompressed air, which is adapted to be supplied and compressed thereinby the device constituting the subject matter of the present invention.

The shaft 12 is provided with an enlargement or double wall formation,the shaft being hollowed axially as indicated at 14: in the mannerpreviously described and provided with a concentric wall 17 forming anannular chamber 18 extending over a considerable portion of the shaft 12and adapted. to receive oil for lubricating purposes. The axial openingof the shaft and the chamber 18 are noncommunicating, and the oilcontained in the chamber 18 is adapted to be supplied to the workingparts of the machine, in a manner to be hereinafter more fully setforth.

'Extending from the shaft 12, there are a series of radiating arms 19,which are arranged in any suitable manner in order to secure an evenbalance, the number of arms thereon depending .upon the size or diameterof the machine, for the purpose to be explained. The arms 19 areprovided with cross members 20 at their outer ends serving to pivotallysupport pendulums 21, which are pivoted thereto in any suitable manneras by means of screws 22 forming pivots engaged axially in the crossmembers or arms 20 extending longitudinally of the axis of the machine.The pendulums .21 are formed at their inner ends with rings 23 whichencircle the shaft, so that the axis of the shaft and the axis of therings coincide.

The rings 23 are considerably weighted or made heavy so that by reasonof the leverage produced, the rings will act by gravity during therotation of the shaft together with the arms 19, and cause the rings inmoving downwardly and upwardly to operate the pumps.

Mounted at rightvangles on the .arms 19, are the compressors consistingof alined cylinders 2% having pistons therein connected to work inunison or in tandem in the manner of double acting engine, the pistonrod being indicated'at 25. As the arms are disposed in staggeredrelation axially of the shaft and'uniformly spaced apart equi-distantlyof the length of the machine, an even balance will be secured. Eachpendulum has connection with a piston rod as indicated at 26, so as toactuate the latter upon actuation of the pendulum fordrawing air intothe cylinders through the inlets 27 and discharging the same through theoutlets 28, said inlets and outlets being controlled in any desiredmanner by means of check valves preferably working in oppositedirections so that th c air may be forced through pipes 29 extendedradially along side the arms 19, and through the walls leading to thehollow portion 14: of the shaft so as to be carried off and stored underpressure, as previouslyset forth. In Figure l of the drawings the upperpendulum is shown in a neutral position, the one at the left is shown ina compressing position when the pendulum has dropped by g'avity afterpassing over the dead center in which. the vertical or upper pendulum isshown disposed, the lower pendulum is also shown in a neutral positionin slotted lines and in dotted lines after immediately passing over thedead center and finally dropping, when in position shown at the right inFigure l to reciprocate the piston rod and its pistons or plungers inthe opposite direction, such as takes place, during a complete cycle.

In order to lubricate the parts, pipes 30 extend radially from thechamber 18, and have connection with the various cylinders through thebranches 31, as through the me dium of an oil pump 32, so that thedistribution of the oil insured for lubricating the various parts duringthe working thereof.

7 In order to vary the momentum imparted to the pendulums by therings23, the latter may be weightedby means of balls 33 as clearly showninFigure l of the drawings, or as shown in Figures 6 and 7, the ring maybe provided with traekways or grooves 34, receiving the wheels 35 of aweighted car 36, so that varying the weight of the car, the momentum ofthe pendulum can be varied. In this way, theweight acting on the pistonsfor the purpose ofreciprocating the same and actuating the ancompressors as the machine revolves may be varied in accordance with thedesired capacity.

Also. since the cylinders 24. are mounted on cross arms 37, the pressuremay bevaried by varying the proportion of the distance between the crossarms and the extremities of the arms 19, and the axis by varying thepositions of the cross arms 37 and varying the weight ofthe pendulums,as heretofore set forth. Also, it is to'be understood that the pendulumrings are made sufficiently heavy to give the desired pressure, thependulums causing the actuation of the air cylinders or compressors asthe machine revolves, owing to the continuous dropping ofthe pendulumsas they approach a point at opposite sides of the vertical center in thedirection in which the machine revolves. f

It is also 7 to be understood that, the weighted means consisting oftheball 33 or of the wheel car 36, is adapted to revolve around the ringduring the rotation of the machine including the shaft and arms, by thecentrifugal action produced, and it is also apparent that this actionwill help to oscillate the pendulums in addition to the action ofgravity caused by their weights;

Having thus described the"invention, what I claim is: Q

l. A device of the class described comprising a rotatableshaft, aplurality of air compressors radially spaced from and mounted upon saidshaft, means for supporting said compressors for rotation with saidshaft, and means for gravitationally actuating said compressorsduringj'therota tion of said shaft, said actuatingmeans comprising aplurality of pendulums having their centers of oscillation at pointsradially spaced from the shaft and connected to said compressorsintermediate their centers of oscillation and the shaft.

2. A device of'the class described comprising a rotatable shaft, aplurality of air compressors radially spaced from and mounted upon saidshaft, means for supporting said cempressors for rotation with saidshaft, and means for gravitationally actuating said compressors duringthe rotation of said shaft, said actuating means comprising a pluralityof pendulums having their centers of oscillation at points radiallyspaced from the shaft, said pendulums being connected to saidcompressors intermediate their centers of oscillation and the shaft andhaving weiglited members at their free ends sur-' rounding said shaft; v

3; A device of the class described comprising a rotatable shaft, aplurality of radially arranged air compressors mounted on the shaft androtatable therewith, gravity open" ated means for actuating saidcompressors, said means comprising aplurality'of arms radiating fromsaid shaft, pendulums pivoted on said arms and havin their centers ofoscillation at points radiall y spacedfrom" the shaft, said pendulumsbeing connected to said compressors intermediate their cen means forlubricating said compressors dur- 'ing their rotation, gravity operatedmeans for actuating said compresssors, said actuating means includingpendulums supported for oscillation during the rotation of the shaft andconnected to said compressors, said pendulums having rings encirclingthe shaft, and weighted means carried by the rings and adapted to travelaround the same.

5. In a revolving air compressor, a base, bearings carried by the baseand vertically arranged, a hollow shaft horizontally disposed androtatably mounted in the bearings, a swivel pipe-connection at one endof the shaft and adapted to lead to a suitable storage chamber forstoring air under compressure, a plurality of arms radiating from theshaft, pendulums pivoted to the outer ends of the arms and extendinginwardly, the inner ends of the arms being provided with ringsencircling the shaft and adapted for to and fro movement during therotation of the shaft and arms, cross arms carried by the firstmentioned arms, double acting air compressors carried by said cross armsand connected to said pendulums, and connections leading from saidcompressors to said hollow shaft.

6. In a revolving air compressor, a base, bearings carried by the baseand vertically arranged, a hollow shaft horizontally disposed androtatably mounted in the bearings, a swivel pipe-connection at one endof the shaft and adapted to lead to a suitable storage chamber forstoring air under compressure, a plurality of arms radiating from theshaft, pendulums pivoted to the outer ends of the arms and extendinginwardly, the inner ends of the arms being provided with ringsencircling the shaft and adapted for to and fro movement during therotation of the shaft and arms, cross arms carried by the firstmentioned arms, double acting air compressors carried by said cross armsand connected to said pendulums, said compressors including a pair ofspaced cylinders, plungers operable therein, a pivot member between saidplungers and having connection with said pendulums for actuating thesame, inlet valves for said cylinders and a common connection leadingfrom said cylinders to said hollow shaft.

7 In a revolving compressor, a base, bearings carried by the base andvertically arranged, a hollow shaft horizontally disposed and rotatablymounted in the bearings, a swivel-pipe connection at one end of theshaft and adapted to lead to a suitable storage chamber for storing airin the compressor, a plurality of arms radiating from the shaft instaggered relation, pendulums pivoted to the outer ends of the arms andextending inwardly, the inner ends of the arms being provided with ringsencircling the shaft and adapted for to and fro move ment during therotation of the shaft and arms, cross arms carried by the firstmentioned arms, double acting air compressors carried by said cross armsand connected to said pendulums, said compressors including a pair ofspaced cylinders, plungers operable therein, a pivot member between saidplungers and having connection with said pendulums for actuating thesame, inlet valves for said cylinders, a connection leading from saidhollow shaft, and means for lubricating said parts.

8. In a revolving compressor, a base,bearings carried by the base andvertically arranged, a hollow shaft horizontally disposed and rotatablymounted in the bearings, a swivel-pipe connection at one end of theshaft and adapted to lead to a suitable storage chamber for storing airin the compressor, a plurality of arms radiating from the shaft instaggered relation, pendulums pivoted to the outer ends of the arms andextending inwardly, the inner ends of the arms being provided with ringsencircling the shaft and adapted for to and fro movement during therotation of the shaft and arms, cross arms carried by the firstmentioned arms, double acting air compressors carried by said cross armsand connected to said pendulums, said compressors including a pair ofspaced cylinders, plungers operable therein, a pivot member between saidplungers and having connection with said pendulums for actuating thesame, inlet and exhaust valves for said cylinders, weighted meanscarried by said rings and adapted to run therein during the rotation ofthe arms thereto, a reservoir carried by the shaft, an oil pump havingconnection with said reservoir and conduit leading therefrom to thecompressors and parts to be lubricated as the shaft turns.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FREDERICK AUGUST GERLING.

Witnesses:

GRACE EDSON, WM, B. DAVIDSON.

